Save A Soul
by ziv.IL
Summary: What if Naruto broke down mentally at an early age and got more than a little off the tracks? What if it pushed him to do some things our Naruto would never do? Things the villagers will grow to hate him for, things that will make it very hard for our Sandaime to continue protecting him. How will Konoha handle this dark criminal minded Naruto? Can they stop him? Can they…
1. Dark Abysses - The Abyss of Crime

**-I Do Not Own Naruto-**

**.**

**Author's Note:**

**Alright, this is my new FanFic, as I already mentioned, I dropped "Lie" for adoption, among other things, I really don't like how it turned out, and I'm really hoping this one would set a new standard for my fanfictions.**

**.**

**Rating(!): M**

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"Normal Speech"

**"Demonic Speech"**

'Normal Though'

**'Demonic Though'**

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**Summary:**

**A what-if of Naruto starting when he was 11, but still during the last year of the academy, I'm not sure how far back I want it to be, so I'm gonna throw a guess here and base stuff off of it xD – the educational year will be 10 months, this is 3 months before the end of it, that means the second month of the second half of the educational year.**

**A note on that, (This note is after more serious thought was put into the story line, so I've got everything planned now) in this fiction, Naruto has entered the academy 2 years prior to the rest of his age group, the Rookie 9 are not part of this year, they're on the year below him.**

**.**

**Be warned, we're talking dark, evil and somewhat crazy Naruto here.**

**The beginning of the story will be a little vague, I hope to make it that way, so don't be alarmed. Everything will be revealed in due time.**

**.**

**So…what is the 'what-if', you ask?  
What if Naruto broke down mentally at an early age(5) and got more than a little off the tracks? what if it pushed him to do some things our Naruto would never do? Things the villagers will grow to hate him for, things that will make it very hard for our Sandaime to continue protect him?**

**.**

**How will Konoha handle this dark criminal minded Naruto?**

**Can they stop him? Can they…**

**.  
**

* * *

**Save A Soul: Dark Abysses – The Abyss Of Crime**

* * *

**.  
**

"You won't get away this time, DEMON!"

"That's what you idiots say every time, but you haven't caught me yet, have you?!"

The young boy didn't stop to check if his taunt worked or not, he knew it did, so he kept running.

.

"Over there! He went into that alley! It's a dead end! Get him!"

The crowd that has become a certain young boy's mortal enemy, slowly made their way into the alley, readying their weapons of choice.

O, they were civilians, but that did not stop them from carrying large butcher knives, an assortment of clobbering weapons, and half broken glass bottles.

Truly, the malice of these men knows no end…but the young man they are chasing has plenty of that too.

.

The boy calmly stood at the very dead end of the alley, with a vicious grin in place, waiting for the crowd to get close enough.

This would be the first time he tries this particular trick, but there were many before it, these people, he decided, are just dumb.

He crossed his hands and made to taunt the crowd again, he was getting restless and they had slowed their pace to seem more menacing. "Well? Coming to get me yet? Could you CRAWL any slower?! You'll never get me at that pace!"

"SHUT UP, DEMON!", Was his response. A growl from several of the man, and they had picked up their pace a little, but the boy was too anxious and would have non of this crawling. "You'll never get HIM like that!" He spat.

.

The boy's taunt seemed to work as the entire crowd began rushing in blindly, not noticing the various tags around them. They did, however, notice when the boy brought up his hand in a sign, the tags catching flame, and the entire crowd – now surrounded by the tags – being engulfed in the explosion.

The explosion could be easily heard by others, this meant trouble for the young boy. He had quickly moved a box away to uncover a small hidden tunnel, and sped through it, disappearing into a crowd.

The boy knew, in the end, that old man always protected him from legal pursuit, and called the ninja off… Eventually…

.

The young boy continued in a normal walking pace, now under the cover of a light coat with an over-head piece to hide his face in the shadow of the crowed. He was walking towards that retched place he had been given as some sort of home.

Sure, it was a pretty nice place originally, but after a couple of raids, any place can grow to look pretty bad, and his was just downright awful.

.

He went up the short stare case, got to his cracked old wooden door and swung it open.

The young boy never bothered with locks, they were expensive if anyone was even willing to sell one to him, and they were always either broken, or unlocked with a key, one only he should have.

He entered his small 2-room apartment, an old wooden place, filled with cracks and burn marks, the kitchen area only being half-separated from the bedroom area of the main room by a low wall.

'One day…' He decided.

'One day, I will burn this shit hole with my own hands.'

.

The boy went to the "kitchen" and dropped "today's spoils" on the barely standing table.

This, this is why the crowd had started chasing him today. Some basic groceries, and instant ramen.

He pondered the fact that the only thing he didn't have to steal was the ramen, given to him at a ramen stand, as he put the water to boil.

.

True, ramen wasn't the greatest thing in the world, or very healthy at that, but it was cheap, and the people at that stand agreed to sell it to him.

Just that fact alone, made the ramen taste great.

.

He took a look at his orange coat, lying in wait on his bed, another item that was actually sold to him.

.

* * *

**Flash-Back No Jutsu! – The beginning of winter, 6 years ago, age 5…**

* * *

.

A young boy, clad in nothing but blue shorts and a thin, short sleeved, white t-shirt, walked down a deserted street.

The street was deserted because the entirety of Konoha was in the midst of one of the worst storms it has ever experienced.

The streets were covered in a never before seen substance in Konoha, snow.

The temperatures were at an all time low and the winds were relentless.

.

And yet this boy kept walking down the street.

.

"Hey boy! Aren't you cold like that? Come over here for a second!"

'No… Not again… Aren't THEY cold?! Who would come chase me in this storm?!'

The boy didn't turn, certain that it was too cold for anyone to follow him, but perhaps he underestimated that man's stubbornness.

"Hey kid, you don't have to run away from me, I won't hurt you…"

The boy turned to find the man only a step away from him, but he was too exhausted to run, too tired to care.

"Just be done with it already…I'm too tired, I can't run away from you."

"You don't have to, just follow me to my shop, alright?"

The boy took a good look at the man, he wore a thick brown coat, almost his entire body covered by leather, not very unusual for this weather though…

Sadly, because of what he wore, the boy couldn't tell anything else about him and since he couldn't escape him, he followed him.

.

* * *

**Back to Present**

* * *

**.  
**

The boy sighed, he's going to have another one of those nights…

Then again, most of his nights were like that.

.

* * *

**Time Skip No Jutsu – Night Time**

* * *

**.  
**

Night, the time when a person rests.

In Konoha, the night was dedicated to two things, the first being sleep, and the second being the leaving and returning Anbu members.

Even so, in a ninja village, there are always those that are denied both, those who are not Anbu and have experienced the harsher things life can offer.

Amongst those, was a young boy who was getting no rest tonight…not that it was something new.

.

* * *

**The boy's mind…**

* * *

**.  
**

Not that the boy wasn't used to walking long distances, but this was ridiculous, especially since he was following a random stranger!

"How far is this place?"

"How far? It's right here!"

The man pointed at a small corner shop, filled with various clothes, including an assortment of odd coats. Odd for a ninja at least…

The boy followed the man into the shop thinking it to be about time his ordeal ended!

.

A small bell rang as the two entered the shop, but it had no one to announce the entry to as the shop was empty. Not very surprising, considering the storm still raging outside.

The man turned to the young boy that followed him all the way to his shop and one look told him he's going to have to be the one to start the conversation.

"Hey kid, why are you outside on a storm like this? You should stay at home! And why with such thin clothes?!"

"Heh, you must be new around here. I don't have any parents, and I can't really go to… That… Place right now..."

"Yeah… I am, I just moved in… Sorry, I didn't know you were an orphan… But even if you hate the orphanage, you should still stay in it in such a storm!"

"In the orphanage? I haven't been there since I was 4! Mister, if you're not gonna hurt me, can I go now?!"

.

The man was taken a back more and more with every sentence the child before him spoke! 'Surely, it can't be THAT bad… Can it?'

"Wait here for a second, kid, I'll be right back."

The man vanished into the back of the store, leaving the boy behind in the main part of the store, still wondering if it was such a good idea to remain here.

.

* * *

**Back to the real world…**

* * *

**.  
**

A young boy awoke to a tiring day, after a tiring night.

He's having those dreams again…

Truly, they were some of the most depressing he had, granted, they were all that way.

.

The boy got up and headed for the kitchen area.

"Let's see what survived the night… Well, looks like everything made it, so breakfast it is!"

'I haven't had breakfast in a while now… Damn idiots! If only they didn't wreck my fridge every time!'

.

The boy made himself a small portion of salad and, of course, some ramen.

True, it was breakfast, but he was a hungry man by nature, and breakfast was said to be the most important meal of the day!

'Time to go, they'll come here soon to look for me for what I did yesterday…'

.

The boy jumped onto his window, took a good look to make sure no one was around and jumped to the roof opposing his.

'So… What to do today? Where to go today?... I am supposed to go to the academy in 2 hours, so it can't be anything too troublesome, unless I skip the day…'

The boy continued to ponder today's plans as he let his body jump flawlessly from building to building, in the general direction of the Hokage Monument.

The boy's body always took him there when he wasn't paying attention.

'Well, I could go to the compound of those Hyuga…They deserve some kind of payback for what they did to me that time.'

.

With his mind made up, a goal and a resolve to match, the young boy changed direction, heading for the compound of the famous Hyuga clan to do what he does best. Get-backs.

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* * *

**Flash Back No Jutsu!**

* * *

**.  
**

The young boy was getting restless, the man was gone for several minutes already, plenty of time to call an angry mob on him, but he couldn't convince himself to leave!

For some reason, something inside him told him to have… What was it called again? "faith"?, and wait for a complete stranger to come back from an unknown hidden part of his shop, to the main part of his shop, where he has left the boy.

.

"Hey? Mister? Are you still there?"

The boy tried his best to increase the volume of his voice without shouting, lest he anger the man, or attract unwanted attention in the form of the wrong person hearing him.

"Just a second more, I know it's here somewhere…"

Another, long, minute past and the man had finally come out to the main part of his shop again, carrying a thick, orange jump suite.

"I found it! I knew it was somewhere in there!"

"Ah, Mister, what's that?", The boy inquired, pointing his index finger at the piece of orange clothing held in front of him.

"This? This is something special! It's not very good for a ninja, considering how… Well… Visible it is, BUT, you're not a ninja, so that shouldn't be a problem, now should it?", The man smiled as he pushed the jump suite into the boy's unwilling hands.

"It IS special though, it's excellent for the winter, even these conditions, thanks to its thickness, but it's also made in such a way, and fabric, that prevent it from being too warm in a hot climate."

The man turned around and made to walk back into the back of the shop, but said one more thing before going, "You can have that boy, so at the very least you don't freeze to death… I'm sorry I can't do anything more for you…"

.

The young boy was speechless, stunned and so many other such emotions, this man that he had not even known, that was not even from here! That man had given him clothes for free!

"Mister, wait!"

The man stopped and turned to face the boy again, a sad smile on his face, "What is it?"

"I…", The boy was at a loss for words… A loss for what to do, or how to act to this person… No one has ever been this nice to him before…

"Mister, I can't take this!"

"Nonsense! A young boy such as yourself has more use for it then any other customer that might buy it and I will not take no for an answ-!"  
The boy cut him off before the man could finish his sentence and walk away, "No! No! That's not what I meant! I'll take it, but not for free! Please let me at least buy it! I have money!"

.

The man pondered the boy's words as he took another good look at the boy, surely what ever money this boy had, he needed… Could he really take money from him?

'But he does look desperate to pay for it…'

In the end, the boy left the man no choice in the matter, he slammed the amount of money written on the price tag of the jump suit on the counter and turned to leave.

"Wait! Wait boy!... At least tell me your name!"

"My name?... My name is-"

.

* * *

**Back To Present No Jutsu!**

* * *

**.  
**

The boy had finally made it to the Hyuga compound… He really hated those flashbacks…

'Alright, time for some pay back style fun!'

.

* * *

**Chapter-End No Jutsu!**

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**.  
**

**A/N:**

**Alright, that's the first chapter, hope you enjoyed it ;) **

**I'm going over this very old work of mine, so I do have some chapters, but I want to beta them before I go ahead and have them uploaded.**

**.**

**The first chapter comes off as more of an intro into this boy's life, **

**Not all is as it seems. R&R ****J**


	2. Dark Abysses - The Abyss of Death

**Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto – which I do not – I wouldn't be writing a FanFiction for it, I WOULD BE WRITING IT! *psychotic evil laugh***

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* * *

**Save A Soul - Dark Abysses - The Abyss Of Death**

* * *

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The boy surveyed the compound before him, standing atop the wall that surrounds it.

The compound that lay before him belonged to Konoha's most dominant and respected clan, now that the Uchiha are practically gone.

The boy always preferred the Uchiha, not that they ever did anything for him, but they also never did anything to him.

He didn't know why, but he held them above the rest for that.

He chuckled, 'If only they weren't so arrogant…'

.

The Hyuga, on the other hand, were split when it came to him.

For some reason, which he could guess at, those of them that managed to activate their eyes, let him be, but those that have not… He despised them more than any other member of any other clan.

It was still rare for him to do anything to this clan, not for lack of a will to, but because he was terrified of their leader, Hyuga Hyashi.

It only took the man's presence and a look, to make the young boy shiver…

But, for the moment, that man was nowhere to be seen.

.

The boy hopped off the wall deciding it was time he went back down to ground level, and beelined to the nearest tree, hiding in its shadow.

These people… He remembered all too well what they kept saying during their… Encounters… 'These eyes see everything'.

Not wanting to take any sort of chances, the young boy started executing his plan with great haste.

.

'Alright, let's see… I have some trip-wire, eight more exploding tags, five blue paint bombs and my kunai.

Damn it, is that all I have left? I need to visit the training grounds again…'

The boy moved in the direction of the branch family's area of the compound with the stealth one would only associate with a trained ninja, not a failing academy student.

The boy knew everyone in the main family had activated their blood limit, but not everyone in the branch family has. In fact, almost no branch family members had activated it, making sneaking around in their area much safer.

.

As he moved from shadow to shadow, hiding as well as he could manage, another shadow was lurking above him. A shadow far more sinister, one with the gleaming eyes of a predator, stalking his favorite pray.

'Today is the day, demon!'

.

The boy moved gracefully and stealthily from the shadow of one tree to the next, slowly making his way to a small external corridor near the Hyuga clan's branch family mess hall.

'Hungry Hyuga branch family members, my favorite target!'

The boy proceeded to set up an intricate network of trip wires. Firstly, a box to the side of the mess hall's exit, leaving only one wire there, from box to wall. An obstacle that would only force the victim to duck under it in order to pass, making sure it all looked passable, if a bit of an annoyance. Then, he proceeded to set up 4 of his 8 exploding tags on a timed fuse in 5 different corners of the trap, along with his paint bombs.

He held his kunai with his right hand, got right in front of both his trap, and the mess hall's exit, and shouted at the top of his lungs "Hey! Hyuga! Think you can catch me today?!"

And then he waited there, knowing it would not be long before the enraged members of the clan's branch family came out to chase him once more.

.

True to his 'prediction', 4 of them came right out, noticed him and immediately moved forward to capture him… Only to encounter a very thin trip wire blocking their way.

The boy quickly turned around and bolted out of there as fast as he could, mentally counting down as he went '3…2…1…' – **BOOM– **'That sounds like a trap that worked nicely!'.

The boy didn't stop, much less turn, to look at the results of his little trap. He had to maintain his pace in the direction of the nearest wall. The boy knew better then to stick around for too long in this place.

Besides, hearing the Hyuga trash screaming obscenities in blind fury for having been colored blue, was more than enough!

.

The boy had just made it past the wall when he first felt something peculiar.

He could not be completely certain, but he felt there was someone following him, a pair of eyes looking his way, looking at him.

Of course, he was the kind to listen to his gut, particularly when it screams 'DANGER! DANGER!'.

The boy bolted into the nearest alley and started moving towards the nearest main street.

**.**

* * *

**Flashback No Jutso! – After walking out of the store, with the coat on…**

* * *

**.**

The boy immediately turned around, not having even made it to the end of the street, before hearing a strangled cry of panic. Normally, he would ignore such a thing, but this particular cry came from that shop… From that person… The one person that was nice to him…

"MISTER?!", The boy shouted, before breaking into the fastest run his small body would allow under the circumstances, wanting desperately for the man to be fine, knowing that he is probably not.

.

The sounds that followed were bad enough.

.

Small footsteps, making their way to the front of the shop, to its entrance.

A soul shattering scream, coming from a man, not a boy.

The sounds of edged weapons being pulled out of flesh.

Another horrifying scream.

"This is what you get for helping a DEMON!"

A small whimper, from a man, in the very last moments of his existence.

"What… What has that child done to be called demon?!"

A strong slap to the face.

"He IS a demon! HE'S THE NINE TAILED DEMON FOX! HE DESTROYED OUR VILLAGE AND KILLED HOUNDREDS!"

"That!..."

The sound of a slicing motion, a blade beheading and ending the pain of the screaming man.

And before it all, stood a boy, watching with ever duller eyes, unable, and unwilling, to comprehend what had just transpired in front of him.

.

The sights?

.

A half broken front door, to a shop that once seemed to invite one with open arms, now turned hunted, even before the owner had died.

Two man, one standing before the other, an enraged look in his very eyes, a pool of malice waiting to devour those it faces, grabbing hold of the mace and blade stuck to the other man.

The other man, kneeling in front of him, bleeding heavily, already the white pale color of a ghost, the fear of a man facing the all mighty god of death himself present and clear in his face.

A trashed shop, smears of blood everywhere one could lay eyes on.

An arm, without its owner, laying to the right, next to the child sized coats meant for young kunoichi.

.

Could that man really be called a 'man', anymore? Could either of them be?

.

All in front of a child, now trembling with emotions, too many to decipher, too many to face, to handle. Dull and disconnected from the world, frozen in the sudden fear and sorrow these images and sounds before him had caused.

No trace of though, not a single tear in his eyes… But that could not last forever… If only it had lasted forever.

.

The death grip of fear, panic, sorrow, rage, emptiness and dullness, had lessened enough.

Tears.

The first things were the tears.

An endless ocean, spawned as if without a start and with seemingly no end in sight.

And then, a moment later, another soul shattering scream, this one, not that of an old man in the very last of his painful moments in the very last of his existence.

No.

This shout was that of a young boy, as his soul is reaped to shreds, broken, cut, torn, chewed and abused beyond all possible recognition.

**.**

* * *

**Flashback no Jutsu – Kai!**

* * *

**.**

Panting, the boy stumbled a little, but returned to his full speed not a second later.

'Damn flashbacks! Why won't they live me alone?!'

.

The boy ran for another five minutes before coming to an abrupt halt.

'Something's wrong here, I'm sure I already past that street… Shit… Of all the things he could use on me, this guy chose Genjutsu?!'

The boy tried to calm his breathing as he furiously scanned the surroundings out of habit, He has been under the influence of such Genjutsu attacks before and knew full well that there was no way out for him.

The boy's chakra control and general understanding of the infamous art of illusion was so abysmal he could hardly detect them, let alone break or create them.

No, sadly, all he could do was wait and hope he managed to get close enough to a main road so the assailant wouldn't risk going full out on him.

.

It's true that non of the villagers or ninja would willingly protect him, or even drag his dying body to the hospital which would have refused to treat him either way, but there were those masked ANBU.

While even most ANBU wouldn't help him if they could avoid getting reprimanded by the Hokage, there were a few of them that would willingly save him, should they come across such a situation.

He didn't know why though, he didn't think he was particularly worth saving…

Perhaps they were just stricter when it came to the law.

They were ANBU after all.

.

As it was, the boy didn't have to wait long, the first kick that was delivered to his gut came only moments later, accompanied by its regular friends.

A sinister laugh of victory and sick pleasure, a dread that makes your very soul tremble, a mind numbing pain, a much darker, much wilder, roar coming from within, and an immense helplessness that could block the sun as the animal within tries it's best to take control of the boy who fights fear and instinct as the final one joins it's companion.

The second hit, this time, a strong elbow to the face, sending the boy crushing into a nearby wall.

For all the boy would like to fight back, if he even could, the boy only saw an endless sea of trees.

Genjutsu, the boy had decided, is the one thing in this world he hated the most.

.

The boy got up and started running along the side of the wall which he could now press his hand against, desperately hoping he could make it somewhere on time to be seen by the ANBU, before things get any worse.

The boy's ears have heard the one sound he had dreaded, the drawing of a kunai from one of the man's weapon pouches.

It is over, he's going to die now. Whenever the ninja draw their kunai it spelled out a death sentence for him.

'No! I will not die just yet!'

The boy picked up his speed and started releasing as much chakra as he could to try and turn into some sort of beacon, he usually never released anymore then he had to, so as not to attract unwanted attention, but that was no problem now.

.

A blinding, blue and white aura surrounded the boy as his speed grew further and further, and suddenly, the Genjutsu broke.

He looked around to see he was 2 streets away from the main street!

'Perfect!'

The boy started running again, only to let out an inhumane cry of pain as two kunai punctured his left calf, causing him to roll forward and instinctively draw himself inward the protect himself as tears he could not hold back started to form and fall from the pain.

'I…have to…'

"Trying to get away, are you demon?! Not this time! I got you now so there's no escape for you!"

'get away…'

While the boy was struggling to crawl away, the man was taking his time drawing a third kunai.

"After everything you've done, demon, and as if to put salt in our wounds doing THAT, well, you finally get what you deserve, a one way ticket to your personal spot in hell!"

The man accurately threw his kunai at the boy's starched out left hand, effectively and painfully pinning it to the ground and eliciting another cry of pain from his prey.

"But, before I give you the pleasure of death, I'll do two more things!"

The man's tone was deceptively cheerful as he draw another kunai out and slowly made his way over to the boy.

"I'll have fun with you-" He threw the kunai at the boy's back, savoring the strangled shout the boy had let out, "-And force you to tell me where he is!"

The boy stopped shouting and looked back at the man in shock, 'No…'

"That's right, demon! You're going to tell me where he is and until you do, I'm gonna' have fun watching you suffer!"

**.**

* * *

**Flashback No Jutsu!**

* * *

**.**

'Where… Where is that horrible shout coming from… Is it… It's coming from me…'

The boy only now realized he was the one that let out that cry of pain, no, of panic.

He was shaking like a leaf, unwilling to believe what his eyes were seeing or what his brain was trying to process, unwilling to accept that which has occurred right in front of his eyes.

The man that had been so nice to him, kind enough to actually sell him something, was just butchered in front of him.

Was this…

'Is this what's going to happen to anyone that… Anyone that tries to be nice to me?'

"What the?! It's you! Look what you made me do, demon! I'm going to kill you for this!"

The man was now walking towards him, still holding on to that wretched blade of his.

A blood covered katana, somehow still shining with fear inducing mirth that screams death on the ones unlucky enough to be struck by it.

.

And the boy, he stood.

Eyes blank and soul frozen in a moment of far more emotions then such a young being should handle.

But he had to move now, he had to move, or he would die.

So he ran, he ran through the storm, deciding to never stop until he couldn't run anymore, and even then, try to go on a little longer.

.

The boys eyes, had turned from a sky blue, for the final time, to a dull dark shade of blue, one normally that of the dead.

The lifeless.

**.**

* * *

**Flashback no Jutsu – Kai!**

* * *

**.**

The tears were now freely flowing down his face as the boy awaited what was inevitable.

A lot of pain.

"You know what's best about this? After what you just pulled over at the Hyuga's, Hokagesama will suspect them and I'll be completely off the hook!"

The man started laughing again as he made his final step towards the boy and draw out another kunai, this one, covered in rust and a strange symbol on it.

**.**

* * *

**Evil Cliff Hanger No Jutsu!**

**Muahahaha!**

* * *

**.**

**Right, that's all for this chapter!**

**That was very hard to write! Especially the middle flashback part :/**

**I wanted it to be perfect and it turned out so melodic, it was just hard to write more than a little at a time :/**

**BUT, I do love the way it turned out! I truly am proud of it!**

**.**

**Don't forget to R&R! :D**

**.**

**Post beta note: Hard to originally write, great to beta :)**


	3. Dark Abysses - The Abyss of Despair

**Third installment of Save A Soul's Dark Abysses arc!**

**.**

**Disclaimer: I own Naruto.**

**GAAHH! My pants! Alright! Alright! I do NOT own Naruto! There, happy?! **

***Stares disdainfully as his pants are magically spared of the fire that was attempting to consume them* **

**.**

* * *

**Save A Soul: Dark Abysses – The Abyss Of Despair**

* * *

**The Hokage's Office**

* * *

**.**

"What do you mean you can't find him anywhere?! After what he had just pulled off, you, highly trained Jounin, are not able to find the boy?! By what right do you hold that rank of yours if not your skill?!"

The Kage of Konoha is not a very happy man at the moment, surely not a being one would wish to be anywhere near.

Sarutobi Hiruzen was furious.

Sarutobi was furious that his man and woman, the most skilled and most loyal, were either secretly refusing to find the one he sees as his grandson, or truthfully unable to, in their area of the search.

Most of all, though, Sarutobi was enraged because deep within his soul, the instincts of old of this ancient in the ninja world, nicknamed The Professor, were all screaming at him in a way they have not done in a very long time.

Danger.

Loss.

The old man might as well have been foaming at the mouth, his grandson in everything but blood was nowhere to be seen and his blasted brain had him convinced it had to do with his instincts' various shouts of danger!

.

"Sir! We've looked everywhere within the village. There is still the possibility he is outside the village, but that would put him pretty far away from the walls for us not to notice."

Eagle was more nervous then usual.

And for a good reason!

If he didn't choose the right words, the old man might think he suggested the boy had left, which would un-doubtfully result in a severe punishment at the very least, including his removal from the ANBU.

He would not be the first either.

.

"Dog!"

.

And with that simple command 'Dog' had appeared, stern and vigilant as ever.

It was still hard for some to accept the way he is without his mask, but once it was on,

The one known as 'Sharingan No Kakashi', was replaced with 'Dog'.

Cold, ruthless, precise, never letting his guard down, never swaying from the rules.

The embodiment of a perfect ninja.

Of a perfect ANBU captain.

The greatest fear of those unfortunate enough to face him in battle.

'Dog' kneeled before the Hokage, silently and obediently awaiting his orders.

.

"Dog, find the boy, use anyone you wish, find him."

.

The command was simple.

Clear.

.

Find the boy, no matter what, and find him now.

.

'Dog' didn't need any further explanation, he knew of which boy the Hokage was talking about, and how dire the situation must be.

'Dog' turned to the rest of the ANBU kneeling in front of Sarutobi,

"Cat, South, out side of the village border, cover as big of a range outwards as you can, head towards 9 o'clock.

Boar, east, Eagle, North, I'm headed west.

"Should you find him, signal us, then bring him back to Hokage-sama. If you arrive at someone else's start point, widen your circle.

After the third circle, place yourselves on the wall and remain on the lookout.

Go."

.

"Hi!"

.

And with that final shout of understanding, the four vanished, leaving four clouds of smoke in their wake.

.

The atmosphere inside the Hokage's office had become practically insufferable as the Hokage waited as patiently as he could for his four best, most loyal ANBU captains, to come back to him, with good news.

**.**

* * *

**'Boar'**

* * *

**.**

'I've never seen Hokage-sama so angry!

If someone forced this on the kid, he is both very stupid and very dead.'

'Boar' continued on his rout to the west of Konoha, beyond the protective walls and mountain of his village, instinctively keeping his right hand on his right weapon pouch, ready to pull out a kunai in a flash.

He knew the boy was always hard to find, even for trained ANBU, at least, when he actually wanted to hide and he knew the boy would want to hide after what he had done in the Hyuga compound.

Even so… Even so, he trusted their leader's instincts more than his own!

'If Hokage-sama feels so strongly about this… That just sets me on edge!'

**.**

* * *

**'Eagle'**

* * *

**.**

'Great, the old man gave command to Kakashi, now things are sure to move along faster!', 'Eagle' mused to himself sarcastically.

The veteran ANBU captain, the eldest most veteran ANBU captain, did not enjoy his command being taken away only to be given to what he considered a 'youngster'.

'Eagle' Was ANBU captain as far back as when Kakashi had just made it into the ANBU, the graying man did not owe the new color slowly being added to his hair to his blood, but to his accursed age!

.

'Eagle' was even up for a promotion!

And there's only one promotion for an ANBU captain,

'ANBU Commander', The one that commands all ANBU forces and only takes orders from the Hokage, the ones charged with investigating council members, as well as handling them, and foreign ambassadors.

True, all ANBU are theoretically only under the Hokage's orders, but in certain cases the council can also give them orders.

.

Boy was that proven before.

.

Now this youngster's is going to ruin everything!

.

The old Eagle mask had never looked so menacing.

'I will find that brat! I will find him first!'

.

With that though, the man increased his speed, now dead set on completing the mission before 'Dog'!

**.**

* * *

**'Cat'**

* * *

**.**

'God that was scary! I have never seen Hokage-sama so angry! Or worried…'

'Cat' knew she wasn't the only one.

.

'Cat' had finally made it to her first destination and started her part of the circle.

'I'm probably first too…'

'Cat' was, after all, known as the fastest ANBU…

.

One hundred meters… Three hundred meters… A mile…

.

'There! I think I sense something!'

'Cat' darted towards a hidden cave not far away from her location.

**.**

* * *

**'Dog'**

* * *

**.**

'Dog' never had such a bad feeling about anything!

He had already woken up with that bad feeling today, but it worsened ten-fold the moment the Hokage called him with such evident fury in his voice!

As if he wasn't on edge enough the entire day!

The young ANBU captain hoped with every fiber of his being that this wasn't about sensei's legacy, but that hope was quickly erased by the Hokage's order.

There was only one option for who his aged leader was referring to.

'Dog' prayed the boy was unhurt as he made it to his starting point and began his own part of the circle.

.

He moved faster than he had ever moved, making ground as quickly as possible while still being able to feel around for his sensei's son.

.

It wasn't long before he felt something…

A mere quarter of the way and he had felt someone following him.

Deciding this was worth investigating, 'Dog' swiftly changed direction, now heading towards a nearby clearing.

Surely enough, his new shadow was still right behind him.

'Dog' came to an abrupt halt at the other side of the clearing, discretely placing his right hand over one of his weapon pouches, waiting for, what was likely his opponent, to catch up.

.

He will get all his answers soon, thanks to this idiot!

.

'Dog' turned around to face exactly the kind of opponent he expected, even though it is also the kind he least wanted it to be.

An ANBU.

'Dog' could practically hear the Nara male population saying "Troublesome".

.

ANBU were trained to take their secrets with them to their grave.

'Dog' smirked behind his mask, 'This one's in for a world of pain, let's see how good his training was!'

.

The, now turned, enemy wore a snake's mask, and carried a long katana and a large axe attached to his back.

' 'Snake', Expertise: Close range with katana, not particularly skilled, but has very heavy swings and stabs, great accuracy when using his throwing axe for mid-long range, always attaches a chakra string to it for retrieval.

The axe is a family treasure, past down from generation to generation.

I'm breaking his axe as soon as I get a chance to!', 'Dog' concluded, as he draw a kunai with his right hand, and got into an aggressive half-tai-half-ken-jutsu stance.

.

'Snake' draw his throwing axe and draw his hand back.

'Going straight for his expertise, huh? Well that just means I get to break it –' 'Snake' threw the axe with as much chakra as he could enforce it with, fire element chakra, and the axe shot towards 'Dog' at an incredible speed, going straight for his center.

'-Right-'

'Dog' side-stepped at the very last moment, causing the axe to fly right past him and bury itself in the bark of the tree behind him.

'Dog' quickly made a half turn towards the chakra string and stabbed a chakra powered kunai into it as soon as the axe was within reach with his left hand.

'-Fucking-'

'Dog' draw his right hand back, and with the malicious chirp of a thousand birds known as 'Raikiri', brought it down with all of his fury backing it up for power.

'NOW!'

His hand went right through the axe, along with the 'Raikiri', and obliterated the blade of the axe, along with the upper section of its pole, sending shrapnel everywhere.

.

Luckily, 'Dog' didn't care much for the small cuts caused by the tiny fragments.

**.**

* * *

**'Snake'**

* * *

**.**

While 'Dog' might not have minded, 'Snake' did mind the small piece of wood that had dug itself into his left eye, it was rather crippling after all.

'Damn it! Why is it 'Dog', of all the ANBU Hokage-sama could send?!'

'Snake' cursed under his breath as he had to dodge what he now decided to call 'The world`s fastest kunai', only to have to pass that title on to another kunai, and then a third one, the last one actually nicking his left ear!

'Damn!'

'Snake' darted diagonally towards 'Dog' drawing his katana out.

'Damn! I can't beat 'Dog' in close combat! That's why I went for the axe in the first place! What the fuck am I going to do now?!'

'Snake' continued his train of curses as he hopped ever closer to 'Dog'.

.

'Dog', The ever scary man, was now easily scarier than ever, especially as he exposed his Sharingan eye, in all its blazing fury.

**.**

* * *

**'Dog'**

* * *

**.**

'Dog' has had enough of this guy, he had no time to waist, especially on a looser that couldn't even dodge as he surmised thanks to his kunai throwing.

He'd dodge the man's surely heavy swings, thanks to his Sharingan eye, and as soon as he sees an opening, this bastard starts cursing the day he was born!

.

'Dog' ducked under a surprisingly fast horizontal swing and instantly made to pierce the man's guts with his kunai, but the latter had managed to dodge backwards just in time and tried another horizontal swing mid-dodge, to cover his small retreat.

Still 'Dog' managed to capitalize on his retreat by pumping chakra to his left heel – now behind him – to move forward before the other could recover, a second kunai already in his left hand.

**.**

* * *

**'Snake'**

* * *

**.**

'Shit! Damn! Fuck!'

This wasn't the first time 'Snake' was severely hit in combat, but it is the first time he had to fight 'Dog' with such a debilitating injury!

Though he didn't particularly fancy the notion if he were to be honest with himself, this will probably be the last such time.

His last injured combat.

His last fight.

.

'Snake' wasn't sure how to take his latest realization.

He wasn't sure he wanted to take it at all!

.

'No. This was bound to happen. I had always been ready to throw my life away for the village!'

.

With renewed determination, 'Snake' started pumping out chakra.

'If this is my last fight, I'M GONNA GO OUT WITH A BANG!'

"Dog! I won't let you save that demon again!

I know you're under orders, but I also know you'd do this regardless, I know why, but he's still too dangerous!

Even if I die, for Konoha, I will stop you!"

.

'Snake' pumped all his pent up chakra and adrenaline into his last offensive, determined to stop 'Dog' at any cost.

**.**

* * *

**'Dog'**

* * *

.

'Dog' was fuming! 'How dare he say this is for Konoha?!'

"You… You think what you're doing is for Konoha?!"

'Dog' growled the name angrily.

"Someone like you doesn't even know what the will of fire is!

The will of fire is the will to never give up, for our next generation! That includes not giving up on our own! You know as well as I do what the Youndaime's dying wish was, his own will of fire, but you still ignore it!"

'Dog' channeled lightning chakra into his kunai.

.

'Snake' did not delay in responding, "The Youndaime protected what he believed was just a boy! He didn't kn-"

.

"Didn't know?! The Youndaime was the one that sacrificed himself performing the sealing!

Perhaps you should not underestimate the Youndaime's skill!

Or perhaps… You should stop being blind to a young boy in need of attention…"

.

'Dog!'

.

'Eagle?'

.

'Dog' stared at the nearby tree 'Eagle' was on.

'Guess he noticed the chakra flares…'

.

That's when they saw it, a large fire phoenix, the signal.

.

"'Dog', I'll take care of this guy, go for the boy!"

'Eagle' pumped his own lightning chakra into the katana he now held in his left hand and presided to attack the traitorous former ANBU nicknamed 'Snake'.

Sure, he wouldn't be the one to actually get the boy, but as he knew how important the boy was to 'Dog', the credit for offing a traitor would do.

.

'Dog' nodded his head in gratitude, and shifted direction.

Letting the chakra he put into his kunai subside, 'Dog' began moving towards the signal as fast as he could.

'It's from 'Cat's area, damn I hope I make it there on time…'

.

'Snake' decided it would be a bad idea to ignore the most veteran of the ANBU captains, the one said to be like wine, only getting better with age, and so he charged at him, katana going for a diagonal slash from 'Eagle's right shoulder to the man's left mid-section, which to his annoyance, 'Eagle' blocked easily with his own katana, without moving from his spot.

'Eagle', on his part, was surprised the other man didn't get electrocuted, but he quickly surmised that chakra 'Snake' had pumped into his katana was wind type.

Pumping a little chakra into his right foot, 'Eagle' made to kick 'Snake' with as much momentum as he could, aiming his chakra powered kick at 'Snake's left mid-section.

.

'Snake' cursed as 'Eagle's kick sent him flying straight into a nearby tree.

Pumping chakra into his feet as he made a swift turn in mid-air, 'Snake' attached his feet to the tree,

Passed his katana to his right hand, grasped it with both hands and pumping more chakra into it, and his feet, blasted towards 'Eagle' at neck breaking speeds.

.

True, many a great and wise Jounin would call it foolish to charge straight into an expecting enemy, particularly one that was most likely beyond the charging ninja's level, but 'Snake' knew something more important.

'Snake' knew his opponent outclassed him, to the point trying to hide was as pointless as the few traps he had left had become.

He was only buying time… For his own pathetic life.

.

'Eagle' made a half-sidestep to his left, even as he passed his, longer, katana to his left hand, charged it with chakra, lest the wind powered blade break it, and made to counter his former comrade's charge with a blindingly fast horizontal slash to the right.

The attack was done in such a way that would allow as little of the power of his opponent's attack to be used in the blocking, of course, still trying to avoid his own blade being cut and making sure he can put as much power as possible into his own attack.

.

A loud 'KLANG' sound could be heard for easily a hundred meters away.

'Snake' never imagined his attack would fail this badly.

His blade was knocked out of his hand, sent flying into a nearby tree, his mid-section completely exposed, and a moment later slashed open.

.

In the retrospective thinking he had managed in what were to become the last seconds of his life, the man code-named 'Snake' though of a multitude of things.

He contemplated on how easily one, especially in his profession, lost his life, as suddenly as he had ended so many lives before, so will his own end now.

He wondered, not for the first time, 'Was I really in the right?'

.

As the world around him faded to the all consuming black, a last thought echoed in his soul, 'Who are you, kid?'

.

'Eagle' watched on as he retracted his lightning covered katana from the now dead 'Snake'.

'So much for loyalty. Well, this guy wasted enough of my time already, I better head over to 'Dog''.

With that last though to spare for his ex-comrade, 'Eagle' turned to run in the signal's direction with as much haste as he could.

**.**

* * *

**'Cat'**

* * *

**.**

'Cat' couldn't believe her luck, she was now positive the kid was somewhere in these caves!

'Now if only there weren't two of them…'

'Cat' concentrated her chakra and, forming a circle around her mouth with two of her fingers, released a blazing phoenix of staggering size towards to heavens.

'There, done with the signal, now I'll just mark which tunnel I took and take off.'

'Cat' carved a line with her katana on the earth, in the direction of the right tunnel, and sped inwards.

.

Soon after her departure into the cave she chose to delve into, 'Cat' found herself having to halt, frozen, both in body and soul.

'Cat' had been an ANBU member for a long while now, four years, with a great many missions under her proverbial belt.

That much field experience does not come without seeing and hearing some very… Disturbing things, and yet, nothing could prepare you for a soul shattering shriek like the one she just heard.

A sound so horrible it made the hairs on the back of her neck stand and her body shake uncontrollably.

The only movement she could make for the longest moment.

.

And then she heard another one, and she moved.

.

'Cat' silently pulled out two kunai and, jumping around the last corner, threw them at the back of her target's neck.

Her target dodged.

.

"Tsubaki Mizuki, surrender at once, I am here to carry out your execution."

.

Tsubaki Mizuki turned his head to face the ANBU member that had just barged into his cave, trying to assassinate him and calmly made his retort.

"You might be ANBU, but I'm an elite Chunin, I'm no push over and if you think I'm just going to roll over and die, you better think again."

He yanked his giant Fuma shuriken out from the boy's abdomen, eliciting another soul shattering scream from the boy, whom 'Cat' had only just now noticed. She had quickly regretted that.

It was better if she had not noticed him until the end of the fight.

Sadly, it was too late now. 'Cat' had frozen for a second more, a mere second, one whole second. One second which Mizuki was quick to capitalize on.

.

Mizuki threw his monstrous, chakra powered, weapon at the shocked ANBU, attempting to pin her to the wall behind her.

And he almost did, but her ANBU-honed instincts saved her at the very last second and she dodged his weapon and pulled out her katana, turning to him with eyes full of un-controllable, un-stoppable fury.

.

"ANBU shouldn't display any emotion, but I suppose that's what you get for letting a woman become a part of ANBU."

Mizuki seemed to pull an invisible string with his right hand, causing the massive shuriken to spin out of the wall and back into life, blasting back towards its master.

'Cat' had to dodge the thing yet again as it sailed right past where she was a moment ago, turning her head around to face the passing menace but not at all missing the sharp movement of Mizuki's left hand at the edge of her vision.

She dodged yet again as a kunai aimed for her head embedded itself in the wall behind her.

.

"I guess it makes sense a woman's more flexible body would offer better dodging, but that's not gonna help you beat me."

Mizuki launched his shuriken again, pulled a dagger with his right hand and rushed at 'Cat', left fist cocked back and ready to deliver hell.

"Bad move", 'Cat' said as she dodged the shuriken again and dashed forward, katana drawn back.

.

A 'clank' sound emitted from the clash of the two weapons as they met mid-way to their targets.

There was a difference though.

One was a dagger, a formidable one, but still just a dagger, the other was a katana with a far greater reach.

True, the reach didn't serve any ken-jutsu purpose, but it did mean Mizuki had his body too close to prepare and swing a strong kick like 'Cat', the more flexible of the two, had.

'Cat', while appearing agile but weak, more than proved her strength with a hellish kick that caused Mizuki to lose his weapon as he was sent flying into the far wall on the other side of the small cave.

The feline devil had instantly vanished and reappeared next to her fallen target.

"Each of the four ANBU captains excels in a certain field."

'Cat' kicked the lying body into another wall.

"Guess mine."

With monstrous strength and cat like dexterity and accuracy, 'Cat' kicked Mizuki into the air and then followed her kick with a powerful punch aimed at his stomach, driving the air out of it and again rocketing him into a distant wall.

"Y-you… Why are you defending that demon?! It's just a monster that should have been killed years ago! THE YONDAIME'S UNFINISHED JOB!"

Mizuki stood up quickly, anger and adrenaline fueling his body, driving it beyond its limit as chakra flooded it.

Mizuki sneered at 'Cat', "So you're a Tai-jutsu expert, huh? Well let's see how you like this!"

He went through some hand signs and formed a ring with two of his right hand's fingers around his mouth as he shouted the name of his technique, "Fire Release: Twin Twisting Inferno!"

.

A malevolent tornado of fire started rapidly advancing in 'Cat's direction, another headed for the boy she had come for, leaving 'Cat' unsure of what to do, could she make it in time to save the boy?

That decision was taken away from her as a giant dragon of water erupted from the entrance of the cave, clashing into both attacks, turning them into harmless vapor.

.

Her back up, 'Dog', was here.

**.**

* * *

**'Dog'**

* * *

**.**

"She may be a Tai-jutsu expert, but that's not a problem, not when I'm around."

'Dog' Cooley made his way to a spot that placed him between the traitorous Chunin and the boy he came to save.

The famed Copy-Cat sped through seals ending in the Tiger seal and brought his right hand shaped into a ring, to his mouth.

"So, you like fire techniques, huh? Let's see how you like this one. Fire Release: Phoenix End"

.

The 'Fire Release: Phoenix End', a technique much like the 'Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique', but this one has the user combine a hefty amount of wind chakra with the fire chakra, creating an impressive number of highly volatile, super-fast fireballs that cover a wider area then the normal technique.

.

True to its advantage in wide range and speed, even as Mizuki tried his best to move to the side, he was still hit by several balls, one in the left shoulder, another on the left side of his waist, the last hitting his left leg and knocking his feet from under him, causing him to roll sideways in mid-air.

The Tai-Jutsu expert of the duo sped towards her target, leaving the downed Mizuki too little time to even wrap his head around the pain emitting from the three born marks.

.

A kick to the ribs sent what THEY deemed the monster well into the wall, crashing them.

A fist to the neck of the downed beast, crashing its windpipe.

A set of seals, a stream of fire seeming to belong on the sun.

The remains of a corps, ashes.

.

The fight was over, now all that was left, was to pick up the pieces.

* * *

**/END**

**Woa! That chapter got a little longer then I had planned! xD**

**Seeing as it got so long, and how this point in the chapter fits perfectly in my "master plan", I have decided to cut things here.**

**No, sorry, not much of a cliff hanger, I do hope you have all enjoyed the fights though.**

**Those are very hard to write for a multitude of reasons, so I am really hoping they came out alright…**

**.**

**As always, remember that this story is an R&R one and your reviews help feed my soul so I don't need to kill cats for it. Small, adorable little cats. With fire. Hell fire.**

**.**

**ziv.**


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